Useful Searches

Join 40,000+ entrepreneurswho are kicking butt andwinning their dream life.

Unscripted™ Entrepreneurship:A Business That Pays More Than Money, It Pays Time.

"Fastlane" is an entrepreneur discussion forum based on The Unscripted Entrepreneurial Framework (TUNEF) outlined in the two best-selling books by MJ DeMarco (The Millionaire Fastlane and UNSCRIPTED™). From multimillionaires to digital nomads, the forum features real entrepreneurs creating real businesses.

So today is a milestone for me. I year of applying what I have learned from the TMF and the great people of this forum. To @MJ DeMarco and all of you that have helped me along my path - a big Thank You!

In just 1 year I have started 4 new businesses, attended B&P, attended C&B, joined a mastermind, spent countless hours and $ on improving myself, joined a gym, changed my diet, studied business psychology extensively, learned how to build and market websites from scratch, became a better husband and father, mentored a few people, and countless other improvements that have totally changed my life for the better.

I have failed at things but am not afraid, have succeeded at things but not become blind, won the battle against judgment, smashed many limiting beliefs, and can generally "see" things better.

If you haven't made the decision to jump in here and get your hands dirty, please do. The TMF family has always been here to help...for free and very genuine in my experience. Ask the best questions you can, do your homework, and provide value along the way to others.

Again - Thank You to all that took the time to share your knowledge with me and the fastlane family.

edited by Vigilante : This thread was changed to gold in July 2016, but to those who come across this later, please start at the beginning, read each post and the progression in this thread by Get Right, and you will see the bread crumbs he left for you that caused this thread to turn gold in 2016

Awesome to hear of transformations underway. Thank you for sharing your experience.

The 7 year anniversary of the forum is in just a few days as well!

What if life wasn't just about paying bills and then dying?Burn life's SCRIPT and learn how to build a business that pays more than money; it pays freedom.Unscripted: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Entrepreneurship-----------------------------------------------------
** Amazon ** Website ** Download ** Instagram

Some people register here, post epic 1AM excitement induced rants, and never log in again as their Subway Sandwich Artist career flounders.

Yet another group registers, racks up a significant post count, zero speed/rep bank, and stays for years. If I owned the place, I would bounce them out much like you might a 29 year old child still living in your basement.

A third group comes in here talking the talk, but not walking the walk. They may get some rep, and even have some good posts, but later you learn they're actually pizza delivery drivers. Much like a kid that grew up in the church, they might know the right words to say, but don't really get the theology for themselves. They just regurgitate what they heard.

Then... there are people like YOU. YOU are who MJ wrote the book for. YOU are who MJ built the forum for. YOU are the reason people like me hang out here.

Courage. Transformation. Guts and determination. You'll get there. You are an [HASHTAG]#ActionTaker[/HASHTAG]

Some people register here, post epic 1AM excitement induced rants, and never log in again as their Subway Sandwich Artist career flounders.

Yet another group registers, racks up a significant post count, zero speed/rep bank, and stays for years. If I owned the place, I would bounce them out much like you might a 29 year old child still living in your basement.

A third group comes in here talking the talk, but not walking the walk. They may get some rep, and even have some good posts, but later you learn they're actually pizza delivery drivers. Much like a kid that grew up in the church, they might know the right words to say, but don't really get the theology for themselves. They just regurgitate what they heard.

Then... there are people like YOU. YOU are who MJ wrote the book for. YOU are who MJ built the forum for. YOU are the reason people like me hang out here.

Courage. Transformation. Guts and determination. You'll get there. You are an [HASHTAG]#ActionTaker[/HASHTAG]

Click to expand...

Dude is on a roll. No one stop him please.

What if life wasn't just about paying bills and then dying?Burn life's SCRIPT and learn how to build a business that pays more than money; it pays freedom.Unscripted: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Entrepreneurship-----------------------------------------------------
** Amazon ** Website ** Download ** Instagram

Congratulations on a fulfilling year. People who come here in hopes of being filthy rich are clueless to what TMF really is. Sure, being rich and well off in life is a majority goal. But having freedom to change your mindset, to focus and hone in on your family and nature, to really get to know who you are as a person is the real wealth. Unfortunately we live in a world where money drives our short little lives, but being free from the system to focus on life and knowledge is the most enticing thing that drives me to keep pushing forward.

@Get Right I raise a toast for you. One life changing year with many more to follow. Cheers.

If I told you it would take a year to see results. A year of hard scary work with no immediate gratifications. A year of others doubting you. A year where mentors, banks, family and friends don't take you seriously. A year where you don't "see" your path (or any path). A year peppered with failures. A year that absolutely proves that there are no shortcuts. A year that you can't describe, mark with achievements or see in your bank account.

Would you still do it? Would you still put that first foot forward? Would you get real with yourself, find and fix the broken parts? Would you sacrifice?

If you were willing to do it, what would stop you? Would you let excuses stop you? Would you let other's opinions stop you? Would you let a failed mentorship stop you? Would you let some other company/bank/competitor stop you?

What if life wasn't just about paying bills and then dying?Burn life's SCRIPT and learn how to build a business that pays more than money; it pays freedom.Unscripted: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Entrepreneurship-----------------------------------------------------
** Amazon ** Website ** Download ** Instagram

Well, I outpaced one of my mentors...he asks me for advice now. Another mentor (65+) "fully retired" from all contact with just about everybody. I greatly appreciate what they gave when they could. I didn't get the fairy-tale mentor relationship (not sure it even exists) but that's ok. You can learn it on your own through nuggets people gift you.

My 2nd TMF Anniversary is right around the corner (45 days) so time for an update.

In my initial post(s) you saw that changing my mindset was the priority for year #1. My priority for year #2 was to try building true CENTS fastlane businesses. I have now built 7 businesses since reading TMF. 6 failed. But 1 hasn't.

I've affectionately named it "Lucky #7" (I hope you all know how luck happens by now)

...and there are some interesting things about "Lucky #7". First, it does a pretty good job with CENTS. But how it fits NESCT is a little different than you might think. For example:

Need - Our clients know they need this product...but they have always purchased it as part of "grouping" of products. Never separate. Our product pulls this component "out", polishes it and sells it direct. Our clients are very receptive to this method because it solves a pain point (having to buy a lot of stuff in order to get one product).

Scale - Our market is huge so the Scale component is there. The interesting thing about this business is that is also involves magnitude. My previous attempts had very little magnitude. Not that bigger is better...but let me tell you, magnitude can make big things happen quickly. When you sell big products with big margins you can Scale on a whole other level.

Entry - We are all pretty familiar with how Entry works. But there are some methods of Entry we don't look at often. Lucky #7 has one such Entry gate. That gate is "nobody wants to do this work". Ha! What if you were selling a product that your competitors actually wanted to not sell! Nobody really wants to clean toilet drains, deal with OBGYN insurance or pick up garbage but that leaves a great vacuum for us entrepreneurs. And I love it.

Control and Time - Nothing extra special to note here but they are adhered to.

So is Lucky #7 going to be the one? I don't know. I just know that each business I build makes the next one better. And I'm starting to suck less

My 2nd TMF Anniversary is right around the corner (45 days) so time for an update.

In my initial post(s) you saw that changing my mindset was the priority for year #1. My priority for year #2 was to try building true CENTS fastlane businesses. I have now built 7 businesses since reading TMF. 6 failed. But 1 hasn't.

I've affectionately named it "Lucky #7" (I hope you all know how luck happens by now)

...and there are some interesting things about "Lucky #7". First, it does a pretty good job with CENTS. But how it fits NESCT is a little different than you might think. For example:

Need - Our clients know they need this product...but they have always purchased it as part of "grouping" of products. Never separate. Our product pulls this component "out", polishes it and sells it direct. Our clients are very receptive to this method because it solves a pain point (having to buy a lot of stuff in order to get one product).

Scale - Our market is huge so the Scale component is there. The interesting thing about this business is that is also involves magnitude. My previous attempts had very little magnitude. Not that bigger is better...but let me tell you, magnitude can make big things happen quickly. When you sell big products with big margins you can Scale on a whole other level.

Entry - We are all pretty familiar with how Entry works. But there are some methods of Entry we don't look at often. Lucky #7 has one such Entry gate. That gate is "nobody wants to do this work". Ha! What if you were selling a product that your competitors actually wanted to not sell! Nobody really wants to clean toilet drains, deal with OBGYN insurance or pick up garbage but that leaves a great vacuum for us entrepreneurs. And I love it.

Control and Time - Nothing extra special to note here but they are adhered to.

So is Lucky #7 going to be the one? I don't know. I just know that each business I build makes the next one better. And I'm starting to suck less

Click to expand...

This was a fantastic read. I'm glad you came back after a year and gave us an update. Puts a lot of perspective on changing yourself first, and then creating the business that provides value.

Would you mind talking about the businesses that failed as well? What made you conclude that each of them "failed"? I feel like this would be extremely valuable to a lot of people on this forum.

Would you mind talking about the businesses that failed as well? What made you conclude that each of them "failed"? I feel like this would be extremely valuable to a lot of people on this forum.

Click to expand...

Happy to, thanks for the nice post.

Failure report:

Business #1 - Service biz B2C, violated Time in a major way. I literally couldn't get out of being "the" guy. Clients didn't want to deal with my employees when they had my phone number.

Business #2 - Service biz B2B, violated Time again. This was a remote business but eventually the clients found out it was mine. They preferred to call me directly instead of going through the remote business.

Business #5 - Ebook B2C and B2B, violated Need, Scale and probably everything else. I followed my "passion". That road led to nothing. Don't do this please, worse failure to date.

Business #6 - Service B2B, violated Entry and eggs in a basket (my new NESCT commandment ). Woke up one morning and my biggest client went with another company. That client was big enough to take the whole company down.

Business #1 - Service biz B2C, violated Time in a major way. I literally couldn't get out of being "the" guy. Clients didn't want to deal with my employees when they had my phone number.

Business #2 - Service biz B2B, violated Time again. This was a remote business but eventually the clients found out it was mine. They preferred to call me directly instead of going through the remote business.

Business #5 - Ebook B2C and B2B, violated Need, Scale and probably everything else. I followed my "passion". That road led to nothing. Don't do this please, worse failure to date.

Business #6 - Service B2B, violated Entry and eggs in a basket (my new NESCT commandment ). Woke up one morning and my biggest client went with another company. That client was big enough to take the whole company down.

I kind-of wear these "failures" as badges. Maybe like a battle scar.

Click to expand...

Wow. I did not expect you to go through and list every single business. Thank you man. This thread has now become gold.

A follow up question: did you stay within the same market/industry for businesses #1-6? Or did you initiate them based on a need that you discovered?

Business #1 - Service biz B2C, violated Time in a major way. I literally couldn't get out of being "the" guy. Clients didn't want to deal with my employees when they had my phone number.

Business #2 - Service biz B2B, violated Time again. This was a remote business but eventually the clients found out it was mine. They preferred to call me directly instead of going through the remote business.

Business #5 - Ebook B2C and B2B, violated Need, Scale and probably everything else. I followed my "passion". That road led to nothing. Don't do this please, worse failure to date.

Business #6 - Service B2B, violated Entry and eggs in a basket (my new NESCT commandment ). Woke up one morning and my biggest client went with another company. That client was big enough to take the whole company down.

Business #1 and #2 were in the same industry. They were spin-offs of my "job".

Business #3 was a totally new market/industry and my first entry into Ecomm. The business was "handed off" to me from a friend, so no research. It met a few CENTS commandments so I jumped in.

Business #4 was my first attempt to build a fastlane e-comm biz, different market/industry that was determined by a process (that needed refinement).

Business #5 was a different market/industry than the others. "Need determined by passion"...and yep that quotation/thought was about as dumb as the business.

Business #6 was a spin off of #1 and #2

Lucky #7 was a semi-related industry to #1,#2, and #6 but built specifically around CENTS. It caters to a totally different market.

Click to expand...

I spent an entire year reading books, listening to podcasts, and working on my mental attitude, and your description is so real that it's scary. Scary in a good way I suppose. In a way that, If I'm able to overcome obstacles in a similar way to you, I will be fulfilled.

Sorry for picking your brain, but did the needs come to you (in terms of generating the idea)? Or did you actively look for solution?

I'm currently in that stage of finding needs, and I'm finding them everyday. So far, basically all of them don't fit the CENTS model, and are quite rare/one-time-customer thing. Would you mind sharing a few tips?

Sorry for picking your brain, but did the needs come to you (in terms of generating the idea)? Or did you actively look for solution?

Click to expand...

Actually I look for markets first (took me a year to figure that one out). Needs second. Product third.

Markets - Where are the large hungry masses that are ready to cram money down your throat? The markets where you mention "XYZ" and they foam at the mouth. That's where I want to be. Think health, pets, pleasure, etc.

Needs - I listen to that market. I listen a lot. They will tell you (indirectly) what they want if you get close enough. I love the comments section on niche websites, blogs, forums and social media. Treasure.

Product - I look for smiles. Forget statements like "I'd buy one" or "looks awesome" (they aren't going to buy anything from you). Look for those smiles. They can't hide them and they know you are on to something.

Business #1 - Service biz B2C, violated Time in a major way. I literally couldn't get out of being "the" guy. Clients didn't want to deal with my employees when they had my phone number.

Business #2 - Service biz B2B, violated Time again. This was a remote business but eventually the clients found out it was mine. They preferred to call me directly instead of going through the remote business.

Business #5 - Ebook B2C and B2B, violated Need, Scale and probably everything else. I followed my "passion". That road led to nothing. Don't do this please, worse failure to date.

Business #6 - Service B2B, violated Entry and eggs in a basket (my new NESCT commandment ). Woke up one morning and my biggest client went with another company. That client was big enough to take the whole company down.

I kind-of wear these "failures" as badges. Maybe like a battle scar.

Click to expand...

Rep+++ Great stuff here.

What if life wasn't just about paying bills and then dying?Burn life's SCRIPT and learn how to build a business that pays more than money; it pays freedom.Unscripted: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Entrepreneurship-----------------------------------------------------
** Amazon ** Website ** Download ** Instagram

About Fastlane

The Fastlane Forum is an entrepreneur discussion forum based on the UNSCRIPTED® Entrepreneurial Framework outlined in the best-selling books The Millionaire Fastlane (2011) and UNSCRIPTED (2017).Learn More